Boy, 7, who was given metal detector for Christmas discovers World War Two "bomb" in fields nearby

Boy, 7, who was given metal detector for Christmas discovers World War Two 'bomb' in fields nearbySonny Carter found the 10lb capsule while out for a Boxing Day walkHis father became suspicious when rinsing off the mud-caked objectA relative who worked for the RAF armoury confirmed it was a shell

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UPDATED:

00:37 GMT, 29 December 2012

When he was given a metal detector for Christmas, seven-year-old Sonny Carter hoped to find buried treasure.

He tried it out on Boxing Day – and within 15 minutes the machine began bleeping.

Sonny found a heavy metal object caked in mud, which he dug up and took home. But as his father Jem Carter, 37, rinsed it in the sink, he realised it looked like an unexploded bomb.

The family alerted police and a bomb disposal team raced to their home in King’s Lynn, Norfolk. They examined the 11.5lb device and said it was an RAF practice bomb from the Second World War – which luckily did not contain explosives.

Amazing discovery: Sonny Carter, seven, was out walking with his brother Marley, nine, and their parents when he found a 10lb bomb with his new metal detector

Sonny's relieved mother, Tracey Wood, said today that, despite the drama, she was impressed that her son's National Geographic present had worked so well.

She said: 'We are dumbfounded that he discovered this on his first go.

'We are going to go out again to see if he can find something Roman. It has made our Christmas.

'It was caked in mud and Jem just thought it was a lump of metal and took it home.

'Sonny did become a little nervous with the arrival of the emergency services.'

The child had been enjoying a Boxing Day walk on Roydon Common for around 15 minutes with his parents and brother Marley, nine, when his metal detector started beeping.

Buried treasure: Sonny's father Jem became suspicious while rinsing off the muddy object (pictured) and contacted a relative who had served in the army during WWII and confirmed that it was a bomb

He dug up the treasure, but couldn't make out what it was – so he hurriedly bundled up the muddy object and took it home to wash it.